Construction of a Pourbaix Diagram

A Pourbaix diagram plots the equilibrium potential (Ee : ) between a metal and its various
oxidised species as a function of pH.
The extent of half-cell reactions that describe the dissolution of metal
M = Mz+ + zedepend on various factors, including the potential, E, pH and the concentration of the oxidised
species, Mz+. The Pourbaix diagram can be thought of as analogous to a phase diagram of an
alloy, which plots the lines of equilibrium between different phases as temperature and
composition are varied.
To plot a Pourbaix diagram the relevant Nernst equations are used. As the Nernst equation is
derived entirely from thermodynamics, the Pourbaix diagram can be used to determine which
species is thermodynamically stable at a given E and pH. It gives no information about
the kinetics of the corrosion process.
Constructing a Pourbaix Diagram :
The following steps illustrates how a Pourbaix diagram is constructed from first principles, using
the example of Zinc.
Step 1 :

Step 2 :

Step 3 :

Step 4 :

Step 5:

Step 6:

Step 7 :

Step 8:

Source : http://www.doitpoms.ac.uk/tlplib/
pourbaix/pourbaix_construction.php